Rail joint



E. R. BRITCHER.

RAIL JOINT. APPLICATION FILED JAN. 9 1922- Patented Mar. 21, 1922.

PATENT OFFICE.

EDWARD R. BRITCHER, OF YORK, PENNSYLVANIA.-

RAIL JOINT.

Specification of Letters Patent. Patented Man 21 1922 Application filedJanuary 9, 1922. Serial No. 528,063.

To aZZ whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, EDWARD B1. BRITGHER, a citizen oi the United States,residing at York, in the county of York and State of ljennsylvania, haveinvented certain new and useiul improvements in Rail Joints, of whichthe following is a specification, reference being had to theaccompanying drawino s.

It is the purpose of the present invention to provide a joint tor rails,whereby the adjaccnt ends of the rails are locked against disconnectionin three different directions, for instance against movement upwardly,even though. the retaining spikes become loose, laterally in eitherdirection, and also i'rom ex essive movement away from each other inalignment with the rail sections.

fuiother purpose is the provision of a joint, wherein the h'sh platesand securing bolts are eliminated, which will save not only considerableexpense, but also considerable labor and material.

It. still further purpose is the provision of a joint, which is not onlylocked against separable movement in the three different directions asabove noted, but also the joints, which are so constructed to permit oi?expansion and contraction of the rail sections when united.

'lurther purpose is the provision of a joint, wherein the adj accnt endsof the rail sections are spliced together along an inclined direction,the inclined connected ends being provided with toothed surfaces, theshoulders 'lorlied thereby being so disposed and arranged as to preventdisconnection of the rail sections in the three difierent directions.

fittill a 'h'irther purpose is the provision of a bifurcated connectionbetween the balls or the rails, to insure prevention of disconnectionlatemlly in either direction.

ii hile the design and construction at present illustrated and set forthare deemed preteraliile, it obvious that as a result of a reduction ofthe invention to a more practical term "for commercial purposes, theinvention may he susceptible of changes, and

the right to these changes is claimed, provided they are comprehendedwithin the scope or what is claimed.

The invention comprises further features and combination of parts, aswill be hereinafter set "forth, shown in the drawings and claimed.

In the drawings Figure l is a view in side elevation showthe adjacentends of two rails connected by means of the improved joint;

Figure 2 is a detail view in side elevation of one end of one railsection;

Figure 3 is a detail view in side elevation of the end of the other railsection;

Figure 4: is a detail perspective of the upper part of the rail section1, showing the tongue 4; and

Figure 5 is a detail perspective of the upper part of the rail section2, showing the bifurcation 22.

Referring to the drawings, 1 and 2 designate the adjacent end portionsof two rail sections, it being noted that the end of the rail section 1has the end of its ball 3 provided with a tongue 4-. In fact theopposite sides of the ball are cut away, causing to be formed angularrecesses 5, which in turn cause the formation of the tongue 4. Thetongue 4 and the recesses 5 extend in a vertical direction.

It will be noted that the rail section 1 has the lower part of its web 6and base 7 extended, thereby providing an elongated tongue 8, which, asbefore stated consists oi the web 6 and the base 7.

The web of the rail section 1 from the lower edge or corner of thetongue 4 is inclined downwardly and under the tongue 4: as shown at 9,it being obvious that the up per edge of the tongue 8 is provided with aplurality of V-shaped teeth 10 and 11, there being intervening Vehapednotches or recesses 12., for the reception of the V-shaped teeth of theend of the adjacent rail section. The recess or notch 12, adjacent thetongue 4 has one of its inclined edges merging into and at right anglesto the inclined edge or surface 9. The tooth 11 has its apex on a planebelow the apex of the tooth 10 which has its apex on a plane below thecrotch adjacent where one inclined edge of one of the recesses 12 andthe inclined edge 9 come together. The tooth 11 has an inclined edge 13,which is substantially at right angles to the edge 14, which extendsdownwardly and under the edge 13.

The end of the rail section 2 is correspondingly constructed namely ithas a recess 15 formed in its web and base, it being obvious that thelower portion of the web and the base are cut away, to provide for thereception of the tongue 8. The shoulders 9 and

